ISLAMABAD: The National Institute of Health (NIH) on Wednesday refuted the news on report of any new Covid-19 sub-variant in the country while the Sindh Health Department claimed to have detected cases of the new – more infectious variant.
According to a official of NIH, currently, XBB Omicron sub-variant is already the dominant variant for the last three months.
He said the National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) was closely monitoring the situation and clarified that no case of Omicron’s sub-variant BF.7 was detected in Pakistan so far.
He said that since its appearance, a total of 29 cases of XBB (Omicron) had been reported from Pakistan and made it clear that “this is not the BF.7 variant” which is spreading in the neighboring country.
The spokesperson said that such news was not accurate as the reported variant in some areas of the country is XBB which is an old variant of Omicron.
Based on observations, BF.7 is more contagious than other sub-variants of Omicron but less virulent. Infection with BF.7 has a much lower risk of hospitalization and severe Covid.
However, BF.7 infection can be severe in those with high blood pressure, kidney diseases, diabetes, or other comorbidities and in those aged over their sixties.
According to health experts, BF.7 is a sub-lineage of the Omicron variant – the dominant variant circulating globally of the Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus. It has a 4.4-fold higher neutralization resistance than the original D614G variant.
This means, in a laboratory setting, antibodies from a vaccinated or infected individual are less likely to destroy BF.7 than the original virus first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019.
This sub-variant also has a shorter incubation period and a higher capacity to cause reinfection or infect even those vaccinated.
The XBB.1.5 variant of Covid is actually a sub-variant of XBB. It is made of a combination or say mutation of BA.2.75 and BA.2.10.1.
BF.7 is a BA.5.2.1.7 mutation of Omicron BA.5. The variant BF.7 has an R346T mutation in the spike protein of the virus and can evade antibodies originally derived from the Wuhan virus, particularly vaccines such as the Sinovac.
The XBB.1.5 variant is said to be more dangerous as it is more contagious than BF.7 and its cases are 56% more than BF.7, XBB.1.5 scales up to 120 percent faster than BF.7 and XBB.1.5 is not only affecting the vaccine and the body’s antibodies but also weakening it.
The symptoms of BF.7 infection are similar to those of other Covid-19 variants, such as fever, sore throat, runny nose and cough. Some patients may also experience diarrhoea and vomiting. While the variant may not cause severe complications, early detection and isolation of cases is crucial, because it is spread more easily.
On the contrary, Sindh govt asks masses to wear masks after detection of Covid’s new variant in Karachi.
Member Sindh Corona Taskforce Dr Faisal Mahmood on Wednesday urged masses to wear facemasks and avoid public gatherings after the detection of Covid’s new variant in Karachi.
While confirming the detection of cases of new Covid variant in Karachi, Dr Faisal Mahmood said the number of new variant Covid patients coming to hospitals is low.
He advised people to get themselves checked by doctors in case of illness. The masses of Sindh, who are ill, have been advised to use facemasks and asked to avoid visiting public places.
Dr Mahmood asked the masses not to worry about the detection of new Covid variant in Karachi. Earlier, the Sindh Health Department confirmed the presence of XBB and XBB-1 sub-variants of the Omicron variant in Karachi.
Karachi has detected six cases of the new Covid-19 variant, XBB and XBB-1, the health department said in a statement. However, they confirmed that the South Asian country was still safe from the highly infectious variant – BF.
According to reports, China is experiencing a surge in coronavirus cases due to a strain that is a sub-variant of the highly infectious Omicron variant: BF.7 or BA.5.2.1.7.
